Being Human (UK) Series 5 Review “The Trinity” — The Devil Went Down to Barry…

Being Human returns this week with ‘The Trinity’. The title refers to two groups linked by one common member. Almost a hundred years ago in Northern France, the vampire ‘Lord’ Hal, the werewolf Lady Catherine and the ghost of a sorcerer called Emil joined forces to trap the Devil himself in human form. In 21st century Barry, Hal, Tom and Alex start to cohere into some sort of functional unit, unaware that the Devil is among them in the body of unlikable pensioner Captain Hatch.

Let’s get the most important part out of the way: ‘The Trinity’ truly felt like an episode of Being Human, despite all the changes. (Since series 1, everything from location to, well, the entire cast has changed.) While the new trio make no attempt to copy the personalities or dynamic of George, Mitchell and Annie, their relationships with each other and the world around them gave the episode a comfortable, familiar feeling.

We saw Hal and Tom form a somewhat antagonistic friendship back in series 4 and there was little doubt that they would be able to hold their own in series 5, which left Alex as the unknown element. As it turns out, she works well with the boys, adding something of a spontaneous, loose-tongued element that they themselves lack. (We were treated to more of Hal’s OCD tendencies and Tom’s gentlemanly ways this week — while their awkwardness is enjoyable, Alex still provided a welcome break.)

The main current day storyline this week was Mr Rook and his secret organisation — or what remains of it; this supposedly important organisation, one which works to keep the supernatural a secret from humanity, is being shut down due to government cuts. While this is amusing, one can’t help but wonder why we haven’t seen Rook and his men in previous series. There have been many instances in Being Human‘s past where these guys would have been useful or at least logical. It’ll be interesting to see whether a reason is given for them suddenly turning up now.

The other current day storyline revolved around Hal turning a mild mannered ex-office worker into a vampire in order to save his life. After Cram is hit by a car, Hal turns him and stashes him in the basement room at Honolulu Heights. Alex, not realising the danger Cram poses, releases him and he goes on to kill the man who took his job. Hal attempts to talk him down before Rook turns up and takes the situation in hand. The episode closes with Cram deciding to rename himself Crumb (as he was mistakenly called by his boss earlier in the episode) and punning that he will be the ‘Crumb that choked the world’. What Rook plans to do with him remains to be seen.

While these storylines mostly worked as standalone plots, Crumb’s storyline was actually juxtaposed with the Devil storyline set a hundred years ago.

In these scenes, we saw Hal, Catherine and Emil set up a trap for the Devil, who they think is behind the current vampire/werewolf war, as well as the human first world war. The plan was for Emil to use blood from the vampire and werewolf leaders in a spell that would trap the devil in the body of a selected human and destroy him. But while Lady Catherine, leader of the werewolves, used her own blood, Hal opted to use the blood of a minion instead. The resulting spell destroyed Emil, killed Lady Catherine and the minion, but only weakened the Devil. He escaped and the audience saw his face, though Hal did not. How long will it be until Hal realises the Devil is Captain Hatch, the abusive old man staying at the hotel where Tom and Hal found work?

Up until now, Being Human hasn’t really mentioned God or the devil as actual beings, though we have, of course, heard about the afterlife. We know that crosses (and in past series, the Star of David) can be harmful to vampires, but that’s been put down to the individual faiths of the wielder and the vampire/s in question.

Throwing the actual Devil into the mix may be a risky move for Being Human. I’m willing to reserve judgement for now, especially after that awesome ending with the poor hotel worker who wrote ‘HE WILL RISE’ in her own blood and then threw herself out of a window, but I’m hoping that God (or Gods) doesn’t get thrown into the mix later on…

Overall, a solid episode. The bad guys are intriguing, and the storylines look set to make this year’s six-episode series action packed. Most importantly, the cast are fantastic. We may not have George, Mitchell and Annie, but Being Human seems to be in very good hands.

What did you think of ‘The Trinity’, dear reader? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

About The Author

A so-called student who spends more time than is probably healthy watching television and attempting to write novels. When she’s not watching reruns of The Golden Girls or creating non-sparkling vampires, she’s usually mourning TV shows of the past; mentions of Wonderfalls or The 4400 may make her maudlin. If you can remember Early Edition or 7 Days then she may marry you.